I’ve been using free on-line image editing tools for months now, and love them. Of late, I tended to use PXN8 most, but after reading a glowing column by Walter Mossberg in the Wall Street Journal today, I decided to revisit Picnik.

In a word: Wow!

I glanced at Picnik when it was a brand new beta – some months back – and liked what I saw then. However, after playing with it today, I’ll toss away all lesser sites.

Read the review (link above). Go to the site and play. For bloggers who like to incorporate images, it’s a dream app. You’ll be hooked.

Seems to be the going thing these days for AOC authors to “strut their reading stuff” publicly on blogs and on Flickr. Although Sean over @ Craphammer has done us all one better with the worldwide premiere AOC video (and it’s a gem!)

So, with minor reservations, I’ll join the club. You see, I only ordered the e-book version, so…

This is the fourth and final installment of a “review” of the just-released Age of Conversation book – actually, just a taste of what each author has written, to make the case why you should buy the book!

This post will show the entries for those authors with last names from S to Z. Except there aren’t any starting with Z. Or X, for that matter!

So what is the “value proposition” of the Age of Conversation book? Take a taste. Then go buy it!

Mike Sansone
DO YOU TALK WRITE? – “We live in the McNews generation. We scan. Lectures don’t sustain our attention — neither do long sentences. Writing like you talk can also be a freeing feeling to those who think they are poor writers. Of course, writing is a muscle that improves with consistent use.”

Patrick Schaber
STARTING THE CONVERSATION FOR THE SMALL BUSINESS MARKETER – “The rise of search engines has allowed for a “meeting place” of sorts between the interested consumer and seller. As the consumers search for their interests, the seller can now be there at the right time in front of the right prospect with an enticing offer. If accepted by the consumer, this offer begins the conversation that can lead to long-term relationships and purchases.”

Gary Schoeniger
THE NEW ENTREPRENEURIAL PARADIGM – “Amidst the wreckage and the ruins of the old economy, a new breed of entrepreneur is emerging, adapting to a new global economy where the old rules no longer apply, where no one is in charge and no one is coming to the rescue. To this new breed of entrepreneur, problems are opportunities.”

Ron Shevlin
BEHAVIORAL CONVERSATIONS – “To succeed in the Age of Conversation, it’s not sufficient for marketers to engage customers in verbal conversations on social networking sites. Instead, they must develop a new marketing competency — a sense-and-respond competency — to sense consumer needs and intentions based on their behavior, and to respond with appropriate advice, guidance and offers.”

Jamey Shiels
THE WALLFLOWER – “When you consider the conversation that is happening online; the growth of interaction, connectivity and communication; are you out there dancing or are you leaning on the wall and watching. Are you a wallflower?”

Cord Silverstein
VOICE TO THE VOICELESS – “Helplessness is one of the worst feelings in the world because we feel powerless to change what is happening to us. We feel alone and isolated with nowhere to turn. Many people feel that the Internet and technology are causing people to be more isolated and that we are losing the art of conversation. I disagree.”

Nathan Snell
ARE YOU REAL? – “All these people are customers. Except they’re more than that. They are community members. They are fans. We engage them. We help them become involved in what we’re doing. More importantly, they let us become more involved in what they are doing. We open the lines for conversation. We establish relationships. It is here where the magic takes place.”

Mario Vellandi
COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE – “By starting a conversation with the attitude of a desire to collaboratively create a better product, service, relationship or experience NOW… we exhibit our commitment to unconditional quality and being a true team player.”

Greg Verdino
HAVE YOU HUGGED A BLOGGER TODAY? – “By my count, I’ve met or spoken with more than two dozen people that I would never have had the chance to know if it weren’t for our respective contributions to the social media community. And each time this happens, I’m floored by the way simple text — just one guy’s thoughts about media, marketing, business and life — pecked out on my laptop keyboard in a few spare moments at the end of each day has led to new real world connections with actual flesh-and-blood people.”

S. Neil Vineberg
COMMUNITY AND CONVERSATION – “For those seeking a voice in their community of interest, technology is your amplifier. You can become a publisher and broadcaster. Spread your views and build a community of interest through
a blog, podcast, videocast and webcast. If you’ve got something cool to say, the audience will be there for you.”

Roger von Oech
HOW TO THINK LIKE A FOOL – “What did the fool do? Simply stated, it was the fool’s job to “whack” the king’s thinking out of habitual thought patterns. The king’s advisers were often “yes-men” who told him exactly what he wanted to hear. The king realized that this wasn’t a good way to make decisions. Therefore, he gave the fool a license to parody any proposal under discussion. His candid jokes and offbeat observations forced the king to re-examine his assumptions. By listening to the fool, the king improved his judgment and enhanced his creativity.”

Kimberly Dawn Wells
UNTITLED – “Not that long ago, dating was a contact sport. Couples got together when they wanted to talk. But, for singletons in the 21st Century, email make-ups and IM break-ups are quickly becoming a shocking standard…Oh, and for those of you considering a breakup via text messaging … don’t even think about it, loser.”

C.B. Whittemore
THE CONVERSATION AGE ENABLED – “Imagine being deaf, dumb, blind — like Helen Keller — caught in your own world with no way out, perhaps filled with brilliant discussion, conversation and brainstorms, but only with yourself. As enlightened and clever as you may be, you stagnate for lack of newness. Your world is a closed loop, a closed system. Then, imagine an “enabler” entering your world…”

Craig Wilson
BRINGING IT BACK TO LOCAL – “The Internet is amazing. Websites, blogs, podcasts, streaming video and e-commerce open the doors to a world of business opportunities. It allows small businesses to speak to almost anyone. However, this broad scope and randomness can also be a weakness for businesses who are not structured, or do not have the desire to sell to the world. How can regional businesses harness the immediate communication and broadcast possibilities of the internet and apply them to the market they actually want to serve?”

Steve Woodruff
THE LOWERED FENCE OF COLLABORATION – “While we still have nearby families and friends for support and fellowship, we now have a neighborhood far greater in scope. Collaboration and communication via the web means that I can now find others of shared interest — wherever they may be. I can create my own neighborhood, based on common professional interests, shared life experiences and mutual hobbies. The common space has no boundaries.”

Troy Worman
CONNECT TO THE UNCONNECTED – “Who are the unconnected? Look around. They are the people you don’t see. Listen. Theirs are the voices you don’t hear. They are the absent. Sometimes they are easy to forget as we go about our hectic days, rich with lattes and wireless networks….”

Nick Wright
CREATING VIDEO CONVERSATION – “The time is ripe to explore the conversational (rather than merely presentational) potential value of online video. Video can be a great invitation for people to chat, discuss and engage with you. You can gain instant feedback from encouraging participation and the more active your consumers are, the more free word-of-mouth marketing you get.”

Faris Yakob
“GIVE ME SONGS. GIVE ME SOMETHING TO SING ABOUT” – “Brands have been giving people songs but that’s not enough anymore — they want something to sing about. Today, brands can’t stick to a single song sheet. People have wrestled back control of brands because each of us has a voice now and we can make ourselves heard — online everyone is equal. If we choose to all sing a different song, the brand’s solo will be drowned out.”